When I was much younger, I was under the impression that anything students “discover”, they will remember. Over time, I realized that this is not really true. First of all, what I hope they discovered may not be what they actually understand. But also, it’s not clear to them what is important about their discovery,… Continue reading Towards Inquiry
In addition to my blog on WordPress (this site) I maintain a huge math education site, featuring articles about teaching math and tons of curricular materials. You should definitely check it out. I keep track of updates to the site on this page. I added a brand new book of Supertangram Puzzles and updated the… Continue reading Math Ed Page Updates
2 May 2023: I sent out my e-newsletter: a summary of the blog posts and changes to my website so far in 2023. Subscribe! 14 January 2023: I presented “Geometric Puzzles: Tiles and Rep-Tiles” at the San Francisco Math Teachers’ Circle. More info on my Talks page. 5 December 2022: I sent out my e-newsletter:… Continue reading News
In my last post, I shared some generalities about puzzle creation. Today, I will zero in on the specifics of creating puzzles for the mathematics classroom. I will do this by way of analyzing some examples. Multiple Paths A characteristic of all classrooms is that they are constituted of students whose backgrounds and talents vary… Continue reading Puzzles for the Classroom
John Golden asked whether I had written about my approach to puzzle creation. I’ve only written a brief post on the subject, five years ago. Yet I believe that my work as a curriculum developer is largely based on my involvement with puzzles: solving them, constructing them, editing them. Of course, puzzling is not the… Continue reading Puzzle Creation
In Part 1, I discussed my relationship with NCTM, its Standards, and its journals, mostly The Mathematics Teacher. In this post, I discuss NCTM conferences, and compare them with other math teacher gatherings. NCTM Conferences vs. Local Conferences I’ve had much, much better luck attending great sessions at my local Northern California conference in Asilomar… Continue reading On NCTM, Part 2
I’ve really enjoyed solving the puzzles in Euclidea, a brilliantly designed app for iOS and Android. The basic format is “given this, construct that”. You start with just two tools: a straightedge and a slack compass (i.e. a compass that does not remember the radius it was last set to). As you find useful and… Continue reading Stumped by Euclidea
I will offer two workshops this summer (2017), at the Head-Royce School in Oakland, CA. Sign up for either or both! June 26-27: Hands-On Geometry (grades 6-10) June 28-30: Transformational Geometry (grades 8-11) If the times or locations don’t work for you, I can offer a workshop for your school or district. Contact me directly.… Continue reading Geometry Boot Camp!
In between June 27 and August 4, 2016, I presented seven to ten workshops (depending on how you count) ranging from a couple of hours to four days. I share most of the handouts, resources, and slides on my Summer Workshops site. (See below my signature for more details on what’s there.) The site will… Continue reading Eclectic
New on my Web site: → Animated slides on the Lab Gear model for signed number arithmetic. Note that for each operation, the model is based on what students already know. For addition, you put down the first number, then the second number, and finally count. For subtraction, you put down the first number, take… Continue reading Animated Demonstrations
Henri's Math Education Blog 